Joey King Leads Captivating Ensemble in We Were The Lucky Ones
Based on the true story behind Georgia Hunter’s New York Times bestselling novel, We Were the Lucky Ones tells the story of one Jewish family when they are separated at the start of World War II. The series follows the parents, siblings, and spouses across continents as they do everything they can to survive and ultimately reunite. In the face of their darkest moments, this family is proof of what the human spirit can endure and eventually recover.
Nechuma (Robin Weigert) and Sol (Lior Ashkenazi) are the heartbeat of the family, keeping not only hope alive, but their pride and love for their religion and heritage. In a time when it was so easy to abandon one’s beliefs, these parents banded together to ensure that their family survived one of the most horrific events in human history, the Holocaust. Residing in Poland put these people in one of the most difficult situations where their lives could change any given moment.
Adam (Sam Woolf) and Halina’s (Joey King) love story truly is one of triumph. They faced some of the hardest decisions not only for themselves but for each other. They were willing to sacrifice their own happiness in order to protect each other and support one another in doing what they thought was the morally right thing to do. After each enduring abuse, starvation, and unspeakable things, the two find their way back to one another. Woolf and King play this tug of war love story beautifully, but King undoubtedly outshines Woolf in her performance.
Mila’s (Hadas Yaron) story is that of a mother determined to not only survive but to save her daughter, all on her own. From lying to her daughter to dying her hair, Mila utilized every opportunity possible to save her daughter, even at the expense of her own life. Hadas Yaron plays Mila in the most empathetic and passionate way, showing a new appreciation for the lengths a parent will go to protect their child.
My one gripe with this limited series is that it was marketed with Joey King and Logan Lerman as the leads when to me this is truly an ensemble series. I understand that pushing popular talent is how streaming services grab views, but it seemed like a cheap way to get garner interest when this show heavily relies on the variety of performances by the entire talented cast. As a fan of both King and Lerman, the accents were a bit jarring at first, not because of quality, but because it deviated so much from their previous work. After the first episode, it’s distraction lessened.
While King and Lerman are both brilliant in the series, the show would have benefitted more from using unknown actors to tell this story. It is clear that they both worked incredibly hard to bring these characters to life, but they didn’t really fit in with the rest of the ensemble which is made of lesser known actors. Therefore they stood out amongst their costars. All of that being said, Joey King shines in a career defining way. She does incredibly well with the intensely emotional scenes, specifically in the last two episodes where her character is thrown in jail and has to deny being Jewish so she isn’t killed, but also gets beaten for lying. Her performance is worthy of attention and will be a milestone in her work so far.
Each of the family member’s stories are indisputably distinct but equally moving and tragic. Stories about the Holocaust are heartbreaking and devastating and, while We Were The Lucky Ones falls into that theme, it also has a through line of hope. From micro-agressions to the constant fear of being killed, this series does justice to not only this family’s story, but for all of those that didn’t make it to tell theirs. The real take away of this series can be summed up by a single line from Sam Woolf’s character Adam: “Hope is not a crime.” It is not wrong to long for things of your own amidst so many horrible things.
We Were the Lucky Ones is streaming on Hulu.
